News & Features Archive

Monday, October 14, 2013

Earlier this year, the National Park Service gave Bill Baker, a former Alcatraz inmate, special permission to stay the night in his old cell. He was 24 when he was transferred to The Rock. Today, he's 80.
(10/14/2013)

That information is critical because someone hasn't officially enrolled in a plan until the insurance company processes the application. The system should be working at the end of this month.
(10/14/2013)

The best-selling author of "Top Dog: The Science of Winning and Losing," speaking September 12, 2013 at the University of Arkansas Clinton School of Public Service. She says a competitive person has the virtues of character, bravery and leadership. To be a great competitor, risk-taking and fearlessness will get you ahead.

The Minnesota Lynx got a warm reception Monday morning as thousands of fans turned out to watch players parade down Nicollet Mall and 7th Street in downtown Minneapolis, showing off the trophy from their second WNBA championship title in three years.

While the scenario sounds eerily similar to the Michael Crichton book and movie "Jurassic Park," no new T. rexes will result. Unfortunately for would-be dinosaur cloners, the mosquito flew long after dinosaurs went extinct, and its meal was probably blood from a dino descendant, a bird.

Overall occupancy in downtown St. Paul office units remains steady at about 90 percent, but it's unclear if the market can support an upscale office tower, which is one idea that Mayor Chris Coleman has floated for the former Macy's site.

The complaint alleges the Rev. Michael Keating "engaged in multiple instances of unpermitted, harmful, and offensive sexual contact" from 1997 to 2000 while he was a student at St. Paul Seminary. The Chisago County Sheriff's Office investigated the allegations in 2006 and closed the case without criminal charges. That same year, the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis conducted its own investigation and recommended restrictions to Keating's ministry, but concluded there was insufficient evidence to indicate sexual abuse of a minor. Keating did not respond to an interview request.

Instances of people feeding wildlife has increased as urban and suburban developments have steadily encroached on wildlife habitat -- and this is not necessarily good for the animals. Foxes, for instance, are growing increasingly tame.

The shift in retirement expectations coincides with a growing trend of later-life work. Labor force participation of seniors fell for a half-century after the advent of Social Security, but began picking up in the late 1990s. Older adults are now the fastest-growing segment of the American workforce.

Science, technology, engineering and math disciplines will generate tens of thousands of jobs in Minnesota in the next decade. Many of those careers require knowledge of the code language that runs computers. Rochester officials and business leaders are teaching kids to code in hopes of bringing those jobs to the area.

When Michelle Marxen's fiance called their wedding off, contracts had been signed and vendors had to be paid. She is donating the reception to a Moorhead organization that serves people with disabilities.

Our next weather system is sliding into Minnesota with rain and cooler temps. The rain will be heaviest tonight into Tuesday morning. By the time it pulls out Tuesday evening, a good soaking rain of 1 to 2 inches plus will be another link in the chain that erases our late summer drought.

The federal government shutdown is in its 13th day, with little sign of a budget deal that could win the approval of both houses of Congress, as well as the White House. The debate now includes efforts to avoid a default if the government's debt limit isn't raised by Thursday. Will this impasse affect the way you vote?

Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., and Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., spoke by phone Sunday but failed to agree on a deal to raise the nation's borrowing authority above the $16.7 trillion debt limit or reopen a government still shuttered on its 14th day. Congress is racing the clock.

If you're among the estimated 27 million Americans who suffer from osteoarthritis of the knee or hip, then perhaps you've tried the nutritional supplements glucosamine and chondroitin. So they help? Some horses might say yes. Dogs, too. But humans? Researchers say the results just don't match the glowing testimonials.

Vikings fans were back in the Metrodome this weekend for the first time since the team unveiled the details of its financing plan for a new stadium. That plan will have most fans paying an average of $2,500 for the new stadium. For some, it's too much. Others say they're happy to pay.

A freak blizzard earlier this month killed tens of thousands of cattle in South Dakota. The number of animals is hard to confirm, in part, because the federal agency tasked with tallying livestock losses after a disaster is closed during the partial government shutdown.

Reports of possible cover-ups and extra payments to clergy suspected of sexual misconduct have put the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis under intense scrutiny in recent weeks. We spoke with some Catholics at Mass on Sunday about their reaction to the news.